Angelo Acerbi (born 23 September 1925) is an Italian prelate of the

Catholic Church The Catholic Church, also known as the Roman Catholic Church, is the largest Christian church, with 1.3 billion baptized Catholics worldwide . It is among the world's oldest and largest international institutions, and has played a ...

, who has been an archbishop since 1974 and served in the diplomatic service of the Holy See as the

Apostolic Nuncio An apostolic nuncio ( la, nuntius apostolicus; also known as a papal nuncio or simply as a nuncio) is an ecclesiastical diplomat, serving as an envoy or a permanent diplomatic representative of the Holy See to a state or to an international org ...

to New Zealand,

the Netherlands ) , anthem = ( en, "William of Nassau") , image_map = , map_caption = , subdivision_type = Sovereign state , subdivision_name = Kingdom of the Netherlands , established_title = Before independence , established_date = Spanish Netherl ...

Colombia Colombia (, ; ), officially the Republic of Colombia, is a country in South America with insular regions in North America—near Nicaragua's Caribbean coast—as well as in the Pacific Ocean. The Colombian mainland is bordered by the Car ...

, Hungary, and Moldova.

Biography

Angelo Acerbi was born in

Sesta Godano Sesta Godano ( lij, A Sesta) is a ''comune'' (municipality) in the Province of La Spezia in the Italian region Liguria, located about east of Genoa and about northwest of La Spezia. Sesta Godano borders the following municipalities: Albareto, B ...

on 23 September 1925. On 27 March 1948, he was

ordained Ordination is the process by which individuals are consecrated, that is, set apart and elevated from the laity class to the clergy, who are thus then authorized (usually by the denominational hierarchy composed of other clergy) to perform va ...

a priest for the

Diocese of La Spezia The Diocese of La Spezia-Sarzana-Brugnato ( la, Dioecesis Spediensis-Sarzanensis-Brugnatensis) is a Roman Catholic ecclesiastical territory in Liguria, northern Italy, created in 1929. It is a suffragan of the Archdiocese of Genoa. The historic ...

. After earning a degree in

canon law Canon law (from grc, κανών, , a 'straight measuring rod, ruler') is a set of ordinances and regulations made by ecclesiastical authority (church leadership) for the government of a Christian organization or church and its members. It is th ...

, he obtained his license in theology. Having completed the course of study at the

Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy The Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy ( la, Pontificia Ecclesiastica Academia, it, Pontificia Accademia Ecclesiastica) is one of the Roman Colleges of the Catholic Church. The academy is dedicated to training priests to serve in the diplomatic c ...

in 1954, he entered the diplomatic service of the

Holy See The Holy See ( lat, Sancta Sedes, ; it, Santa Sede ), also called the See of Rome, Petrine See or Apostolic See, is the jurisdiction of the Pope in his role as the bishop of Rome. It includes the apostolic episcopal see of the Diocese of Rome ...

. He worked in the nunciatures in

Brazil Brazil ( pt, Brasil; ), officially the Federative Republic of Brazil (Portuguese: ), is the largest country in both South America and Latin America. At and with over 217 million people, Brazil is the world's fifth-largest country by area ...

Japan Japan ( ja, 日本, or , and formally , ''Nihonkoku'') is an island country in East Asia. It is situated in the northwest Pacific Ocean, and is bordered on the west by the Sea of Japan, while extending from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north ...

and

France France (), officially the French Republic ( ), is a country primarily located in Western Europe. It also comprises of Overseas France, overseas regions and territories in the Americas and the Atlantic Ocean, Atlantic, Pacific Ocean, Pac ...

, as well as in the International Relations Department of the Holy See's Secretariat of State. In March 1974, he was sent on a mission to Spain to ease church-state tensions over a sermon circulated by Bishop

Antonio Añoveros Ataún Antonio Añoveros Ataún (1909–1987) was a Spanish Roman Catholic priest. He is known mostly as a protagonist of the so-called "Añoveros case", a 1974 episode which marked the gravest crisis in relations between Francoist Spain and the Church. ...

of Bilbao advocating greater freedom for Spain's Basques. On 22 June 1974,

Pope Paul VI Pope Paul VI ( la, Paulus VI; it, Paolo VI; born Giovanni Battista Enrico Antonio Maria Montini, ; 26 September 18976 August 1978) was head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City, Vatican City State from 21 June 1963 to his ...

appointed him Archbishop of Zella in

Tunisia ) , image_map = Tunisia location (orthographic projection).svg , map_caption = Location of Tunisia in northern Africa , image_map2 = , capital = Tunis , largest_city = capital , ...

, and apostolic pronuncio to

New Zealand New Zealand ( mi, Aotearoa ) is an island country in the southwestern Pacific Ocean. It consists of two main landmasses—the North Island () and the South Island ()—and over 700 smaller islands. It is the sixth-largest island count ...

and apostolic delegate to the Pacific Ocean. He received the episcopal ordination on 30 June from Pope Paul, co-consecrators archbishops Giovanni Benelli, deputy for the General Affairs of the Secretariat of State, and Duraisamy Simon Lourdusamy, secretary of the Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples. On 6 February 1979, he was named Apostolic Pro-Nuncio to

Fiji Fiji ( , ,; fj, Viti, ; Fiji Hindi: फ़िजी, ''Fijī''), officially the Republic of Fiji, is an island country in Melanesia, part of Oceania in the South Pacific Ocean. It lies about north-northeast of New Zealand. Fiji consists ...

as well. On 14 August 1979

Pope John Paul II Pope John Paul II ( la, Ioannes Paulus II; it, Giovanni Paolo II; pl, Jan Paweł II; born Karol Józef Wojtyła ; 18 May 19202 April 2005) was the head of the Catholic Church and sovereign of the Vatican City State from 1978 until his ...

appointed him apostolic nuncio to Colombia. On 27 February 1980, Acerbi was taken hostage along with more than a dozen other diplomats and more than forty others, when communist guerillas belonging to the

19th of April Movement The 19th of April Movement ( es, Movimiento 19 de Abril), or M-19, was a Colombian guerrilla organisation movement. After its demobilization it became a political party, the M-19 Democratic Alliance (), or AD/M-19. The M-19 traced its ori ...

assaulted the embassy of the Dominican Republic in Bogota. He was one of the last released in Havana on 28 April. Acerbi was allowed to celebrate Mass daily in captivity. On 28 March 1990, he was transferred to

Hungary Hungary ( hu, Magyarország ) is a landlocked country in Central Europe. Spanning of the Carpathian Basin, it is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine to the northeast, Romania to the east and southeast, Serbia to the south, Croatia a ...

, the first apostolic nuncio to be named after the establishment of Communism in that country. During Acerbi's diplomatic assignment in Hungary, the Holy See concluded an agreement with the Republic of Hungary on religious assistance to the Armed Forces and the Border Police and prepared another relating to the financing of public and other purely religious activities carried out by the Catholic Church in Hungary, in particular the financing of educational activities, which was signed shortly after the end of Acerbi's tenure in Hungary. On 13 January 1994 he was also appointed Apostolic Nuncio in

Moldova Moldova ( , ; ), officially the Republic of Moldova ( ro, Republica Moldova), is a Landlocked country, landlocked country in Eastern Europe. It is bordered by Romania to the west and Ukraine to the north, east, and south. The List of states ...

. On 8 February 1997 he was transferred to the nunciature in the Netherlands. On 27 February 2001,

named François Bacqué to succeed him in that position, ending his career as an active nuncio. On 2 June 2001, Pope John Paul named Acerbi to two curial positions, member of the

Congregation for the Evangelization of Peoples A congregation is a large gathering of people, often for the purpose of worship. Congregation may also refer to: * Church (congregation), a Christian organization meeting in a particular place for worship *Congregation (Roman Curia), an administr ...

and member of the council of cardinals and bishops for the

Section for Relations with States The Section for Relations with States or Second Section of the Secretariat of State is the body within the Roman Curia charged with dealing with matters that involve relations with civil governments. It has been part of the Vatican Secretariat o ...

of the Secretariat of State. On 4 April 2002, the pope added membership in the

Congregation for Bishops The Dicastery for Bishops, formerly named Congregation for Bishops (), is the department of the Roman Curia that oversees the selection of most new bishops. Its proposals require papal approval to take effect, but are usually followed. The Dic ...

. On 21 June 2001, he was appointed prelate of the

Sovereign Military Order of Malta The Sovereign Military Order of Malta (SMOM), officially the Sovereign Military Hospitaller Order of Saint John of Jerusalem, of Rhodes and of Malta ( it, Sovrano Militare Ordine Ospedaliero di San Giovanni di Gerusalemme, di Rodi e di Malta; ...

, tasked with overseeing the priestly life of its chaplains and assisting the Order's leaders in promoting the religious observance of its members. On 21 January 2006, Acerbi denounced the comments published in the Italian weekly ''Panorama'' a month earlier, which said that Acerbi was leading a faction of young adherents of the Order dissatisfied its failure to emphasize its Christian identity. On 4 July 2015,

Pope Francis Pope Francis ( la, Franciscus; it, Francesco; es, link=, Francisco; born Jorge Mario Bergoglio, 17 December 1936) is the head of the Catholic Church. He has been the bishop of Rome and sovereign of the Vatican City State since 13 March 2013. ...

appointed a new prelate, Monsignor Jean Laffitte. Acerbi is scheduled to lead a spiritual meditation during the triennial gathering of the Holy See's diplomats in September 2022.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Acerbi, Angelo 1925 births Living people 20th-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops Pontifical Ecclesiastical Academy alumni Apostolic Nuncios to Colombia Apostolic Nuncios to Hungary Apostolic Nuncios to Moldova Apostolic Nuncios to the Netherlands Apostolic Nuncios to New Zealand Apostolic Nuncios to Fiji Apostolic Nuncios to the Pacific Ocean People from the Province of La Spezia 21st-century Italian Roman Catholic archbishops

Biography

See also

References